The invention relates generally to optical scanners, and in particular to a hand-held optical scanner device for reading and transmitting barcode data and a mass-produced, low-cost optical scanner head for use in the scanner device.
Optical scanning systems have been developed for reading indicia such as barcode symbols appearing on labels or on the surfaces of articles. Typically, these systems include a laser scanning device or charge coupled device (CCD) scanner for reading barcodes.
Many laser and CCD scanners are relatively expensive to manufacture. One of the factors contributing to the manufacturing expense is that the light focusing lenses used within such devices are high precision glass lenses. The precision of the glass lenses is critical to proper performance of the scanner device. Furthermore, these precision lenses also require machined housings for precisely maintaining critical optical axes and focusing distances. These factors lead to high manufacturing costs.